The story

Hamas is an Islamic fundamentalist organization whose military wing has admitted responsibility for terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers.

The group came into being in December 1987, growing out of the Muslim Brotherhood, the religious and political organization founded in Egypt. Its goal is an Islamic fundamentalist Palestinian state. It is considered a terrorist organizations by Israel and the United States.

Hamas is an acronym for "Harakat Al-Muqawama Al-Islamia" or Islamic Resistance Movement, in English. The group was primarily a religious and charitable organization between the 1960s and 1980s. It has wings devoted to religious, military, political and security activities. Read full article »